Climate: temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Terrain: large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point : Pico de Teide on Canary Islands 3,718 m
Natural resources: coal, lignite, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites, fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, kaolin, potash, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 30% permanent crops : 9% permanent pastures: 21% forests and woodland: 32% other: 8% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 34,530 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: periodic droughts
Environment - current issues: pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Desertification, Law of the Sea
Geography - note: strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar
@Spain:People
Population: 39,107,912 (July 1997 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 15% (male 3,121,625; female 2,942,492) 15-64 years: 69% (male 13,396,398; female 13,400,728) 65 years and over: 16% (male 2,592,692; female 3,653,977) (July 1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.06% (1997 est.)
Birth rate: 9.94 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Death rate: 9.54 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over : 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population : 77.39 years male: 73.59 years female: 81.46 years (1997 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.18 children born/woman (1997 est.)
Nationality: noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish
Ethnic groups: composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types
Religions: Roman Catholic 99%, other 1%
Languages: Castilian Spanish 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96% male: 98% female: 94% (1986 est.)
@Spain:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana
The 1997 Cia World Factbook · The Wunder Library — complete classics, free to read, with narration.